Seattle Family Film Photographer
Does buying a film camera make me a Seattle Family Film Photographer?
The set up
This past month, I had a bit of an impulse and purchased a Nikon FG with a 50mm f/1.8 lens from Cute Camera Co. This is a gorgeous lightweight film camera with an internal light meter that made shooting film for the first time easy. I picked up Portra 400 film from the Glazers in South Lake Union here in Seattle, for one roll of 35mm film with 36 frames I paid $18 ish after tax. This set up felt perfect for my usual style and approach, looking back I should have purchased portra 800 for natural light studio work but now I know and can walk into any lighting situation prepared.
To see the gallery of film images scroll down…
I did have to look up a few youtube videos on how to get everything set up correctly. I’m so used to digital photography, where I have immediate proof all my settings are correct and the device is operational, that I spun out a little about whether or not my film was loaded correctly. Then I struggled to understand which direction the batteries go in (I still am fuzzy on how to load the batteries.) It’s been a fun and unique challenge to my anxious brain haha. As long as you can photograph the session with knowledge on exposure, it’s ok to need youtube videos to show you how to load your film and load batteries.
At the photoshoot
As I normally photograph family, maternity and newborn sessions, it felt natural to step into the role of “Seattle family film photographer” during this creative session. It was a wonderful test of my new favorite hobby. I know it’s the same “type of artwork” but the process really feels like distant cousins. Film cameras need significantly more light, the focus is manual, meaning I’m looking through a viewfinder and doing my best to keep my subject in perfect focus. The process is slower, sometimes painstakingly so, but the results feel more significant for me. The artistry is in creating a piece of work with beautiful light, gorgeous skin tones, lovely composition and balance and really understanding that paid portraits can be as much art as any other medium.
Take a look at the digital camera photos here and here.
After the photoshoot
After I finished the roll, I headed to UPS and shipped my film to Indie Film Lab, as suggested by the educational group I am a part of. They customize their developing specifically with the style and taste you hired me for you in mind. This was the most nerve wracking part for me, releasing control is not something I’m typically very good at. But I am very proud of myself – managed to wait the entire time without sending any “check up emails”. And once I recieved my images back, oh my gosh it just confirmed this part of my brain that was like “I love this, I love slow, I love manual” and it’s given me a lot to take into my photography business. I can be a Seattle Family Film Photographer, and shoot both digital and film, and I can slow things down significantly, I don’t have to shoot everything 6 ways to sunday. I can slow down and really look and see if a frame is worth clicking the shutter button. It was a lovely reminder to relax and ease into things.
The turnaround
This process added 3 weeks to my usual turnaround, which wasn’t too bad. I definitely think it needs to be an add on for sessions I offer in the future. Interested in booking a film family photoshoot?
Click here to get started booking your own photos!
